The ANC-JFK route is the fourteenth nonstop flight from Alaska to places out of state, including Everett, Washington; Portland, Oregon; San Francisco; Los Angeles; San Diego; Honolulu; Las Vegas; Phoenix; Salt Lake City; Minneapolis; Denver; Chicago; and the airline’s original interstate connection between Anchorage and Seattle.

The inaugural flight to JFK on June 13 has a scheduled arrival time of 7:05 a.m. Eastern. The daily connection is being offered only through the summer of 2024.

“We operate new routes like this for a short period of time because it gives us an opportunity to see how the route performs,” Romano says. “Once we have enough information, then we can extend it or change the way we fly it.”

Trial routes and seasonal flight increases often occur in specific month ranges. Alaska Airlines has added twenty-two additional flights across North and Central America between May and September 2024, based on travel demands.

“Ramping up usually happens in summer because there’s more south and north flow,” explains Romano. “We’ll still have our yearly Fairbanks or Juneau to Seattle routes. Once passengers on those flights—or the Anchorage ones, for that matter—are at SEA, they can take advantage of all our other nonstop flights.” She mentions that Alaska Airlines has added a new route between Seattle and Toronto as well as Seattle to Nassau, Bahamas.

Technology is driving the new route options. “This flight is possible because we now have the 737 MAX 8,” Romano says.

The MAX series is Boeing’s upgrade of the 737 airliner. The MAX 8, in particular, corresponds to the most widely used model of 737-800. A fleet-wide grounding in 2019 allowed for corrections to software implicated in two deadly crashes. The MAX 9 was the model involved in a notorious mid-air incident in which a piece of the fuselage blew out of Flight 1282 at 16,000 feet in January, which fortunately saw nobody seriously hurt. That incident put greater attention on Boeing’s manufacturing practices, and Boeing paid Alaska Airlines about $160 million as initial compensation for grounding all MAX 9s for inspection.

Alaska Airlines has orders for 80 new Boeing 737 MAX 8, 9, and 10 aircraft with options and purchase rights for up to 105 more. These aircraft open new route options. Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft, for instance, can fly extended ranges because their engines and shapes are optimized to maximize their efficiency and aerodynamics.

“We expect this new route to stimulate demand to come to Alaska. People in the travel industry are excited for that very reason, and Alaska Airlines is proud to be the carrier to get tourists, businesspeople, and loved ones here,” Romano says.

Millions of people on the East Coast have the opportunity to board one nonstop plane and arrive in Alaska. And perhaps most importantly to Alaskans, this new route opens more possibilities for traveling to the East Coast by taking just one flight.

Route selections are based on complex calculations of passenger demand and operating costs. One expense that airlines must account for is landing fees charged by airports.

New this year, managers of the state-owned ANC launched the International Passenger and Cargo Service Incentive Program. Despite the name, it applies to domestic service, as well. For airlines enrolled in the program, landing fees are waived for the first thirteen touchdowns on new routes that have not been tried in more than a year.

Thus, Delta Airlines is trying a new route from ANC to Detroit for three days per week, starting this month. United Airlines has also launched service this summer from ANC to its East Coast hub at Dulles International Airport near Washington, DC.

In addition to the daily flights to JFK, Alaska Airlines is also trying Saturday flights between ANC and San Diego.

Because Alaska Airlines is part of the oneworld Alliance, travelers who book with the carrier can extend their destinations. Whether SEA, JFK, or any other airport hosts their layovers, Alaska Airlines’ partners’ routes can take passengers to other countries. Plus, anyone with a frequent flyer Mileage Plan account can book trips by using miles to fly internationally.

Regarding international travel, Romano notes that Alaska Airlines “hasn’t had a lot of conversation around expanding routes.” In addition to the Bahamas and Canada, the airline flies to Belize, Costa Rica, and Mexico. Sun-seeking travelers have also been able to reach Hawai’i on Alaska Airlines since 2007, and the 50th state might soon become an international gateway for the company named after the 49th.

Last December, Alaska Airlines announced an interest in acquiring Hawaiian Airlines, which would merge the fifth-largest and tenth-largest carriers in the country (by passenger load). Both companies determined that the $1.9 billion acquisition would allow for more service and more route options while combining loyalty programs.

“It just seemed appropriate,” says Joe Sprague, Hawai’i/Pacific regional president for Alaska Airlines.

Under terms of the acquisition, people with frequent flyer accounts will be able to redeem their miles on either carrier. Alaska Airlines passengers could also travel internationally with a single company because Hawaiian Airlines flies to American Samoa, Australia, Canada, Cook Islands, French Polynesia, Japan, and South Korea—plus New Zealand, seasonally—and those routes will continue. Together, the carriers will service 138 destinations, 29 of which are international.

“Alaska and Hawai’i are fascinatingly similar,” Sprague says. “Sure, the climates are different, but there’s a lot of overlap.” He rattles off comparisons, like how neither state is part of the Lower 48, and both states rely heavily on air travel. He also praises Alaska’s and Hawai’i’s indigenous and thriving cultures as well as their intriguing geography and recreational possibilities. “Those parts are more alike than people often realize,” he adds.

While Hawaiian would become a subsidiary, Alaska Airlines intends to celebrate and magnify the carrier by committing to three important elements. Alaska Airlines will retain Hawaiian Airlines’ front-line, union-represented personnel; Hawaiian will maintain its brand; and the merged company will create a joint employee group and operations.

“Like us, they have very committed customers who appreciate their warm aloha spirit,” Sprague says of Hawaiian Airlines. “By maintaining their distinctions, people will experience both locales’ unique personalities and conveniences. We truly want to bring the two together.”

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) is in the process of formally reviewing the acquisition. Alaska Air Group and Hawaiian Holdings, the two carriers’ parent companies, must have approval before they can finalize the deal.

“The Department approves acquisitions that are pro-competitive and pro-consumer, and we’re confident our proposal aligns with those conditions,” Sprague says. “We have very little overlap in our customers and only ten overlapping routes.”

Not everyone agrees that the merger would be beneficial. In April, a group of eight plaintiffs filed a federal lawsuit. Claiming standing as Hawaiian Airlines passengers, the lawsuit argues that the merger would reduce service between the Islands and the mainland. The plaintiffs also warn of economic harm to Oahu if Hawaiian Airlines’ headquarters goes away, along with its support of local nonprofits.

Responding to the lawsuit, a statement from Alaska Airlines noted that such lawsuits are a normal occurrence.

Predicting when the acquisition might be finalized is difficult. Sprague says DOJ must decide if the acquisition violates antitrust laws. Currently, Alaska Airlines is gathering information DOJ requested to certify that the acquisition complies with its requirements. Once that documentation is submitted, a ninety-day DOJ review begins. When the period completes, Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, and all of its personnel and passengers will know more about next steps. Depending on the DOJ’s response, the complete process could occur as early as fall 2024.

“Right now, we’re all excited,” says Sprague, “our shareholders, our boards, our employees, and our passengers… and we expect excellent outcomes if approved.”

If the acquisition happens, there will be one other important change. Remember the longest-ever Alaska Airlines route from ANC to JFK? That distinction may be short-lived.

Hawaiian Airlines flies from Honolulu to Boston, which is the longest domestic route anywhere in the United States. It would become part of the Alaska Airlines structure, and the 49th state would cede the record to the 50th.